Ultimate Smartphone Guide 2.0

It's been just under a year since the last time we examined the state of the smartphone. The intervening months have brought us the expected annual hardware refreshes and software updates, but it's striking just how similar things are at a high level.

Apple and Samsung are still standing at the top of the field, and at the moment there's not a strong third-place contender in sales or in reach. HTC continues to be down on its luck despite the critical darling that is the HTC One. LG is still taking pages from Samsung's playbook, trying lots of odd ideas in an effort to differentiate. Microsoft is still struggling to improve Windows Phone 8's standing with consumers, developers, and hardware partners. All of this is more or less as it was a year ago.

That doesn't mean there aren't interesting things happening at the margins. The Motorola division is still a big money-loser for Google, but the Moto X is a surprisingly good, usable phone that has been very well-reviewed. Alternative operating systems like Ubuntu and Firefox OS are trying new things, even if they're strictly for hardcore early adopters as they currently stand. BlackBerry (née RIM), which at this time last year was pinning all its hopes on the then-forthcoming BlackBerry 10, is circling the drain. Microsoft bought the part of Nokia that makes its Lumia smartphones. Few of these events drastically alter the state of the smartphone today, but they all have interesting implications for 2014 and beyond.

As we did a year ago, we'll be taking a quick look at the three major mobile platforms (iOS, Android, and Windows Phone 8) and evaluating how they've changed in the last year. We'll then take a look at the best handsets money can currently buy and put them through their paces for a variety of different use cases.

iOS

We commented last year that iOS 6 felt a little long in the tooth, and modern iPhones got a substantial facelift in September courtesy of iOS 7. The latest version of the OS introduces a bunch of new features (the indispensable Control Center among them), but it's more notable because it completely rethinks the look and feel of both the operating system and its applications. iOS 7 still has rough edges, and many third-party applications are in an awkward transition period as they straddle the old UI and the new one, but the newest iOS is in large part the facelift the operating system needed.

For all the external changes, underneath the shiny new facade beats the heart of the same iOS we've been using for years (not that that's a bad thing). Apple values the consistency of its user experience above all else, and it doesn't want people to be able to break the operating system by accident. To that end, you won't be able to replace your app launcher or software keyboard, you can't sideload applications, and you can only share things via Apple-approved channels. For some power users, these limitations will continue to prove irksome. However, they make it so that picking up and using one iOS device is the same as picking up and using any other iOS device.

This consistency extends to the software update process—iOS continues to be unrivaled among the major mobile operating systems in its ability to push out major and minor updates to all supported devices simultaneously. This applies whether you have an old iPhone 4 or a new iPhone 5S, whether you're using T-Mobile or Verizon. Apple is firmly in the driver's seat, which is refreshing compared to the tangle of OEMs and carriers who all have a say about branding, updates, and pre-loaded applications on the other platforms.

This commitment to updates means that if iPhone buyers purchase a flagship iPhone when it first comes out, they can usually expect three or so years of new software updates. That's more than enough to cover the two-year contracts most US buyers agree to when they get new smartphones. Those updates can sometimes get the better of the oldest hardware, but generally speaking, it's nice to be able to count on receiving new software features for the useful life of the device.

Another area where iOS continues to excel is in its third-party app library—usually, if you need something, you can find a well-designed app that will do it somewhere in the app store. While "big name" apps like Hulu, Dropbox, Netflix, Spotify, and others are all available on most of the major platforms at this point, iOS continues to lead in individual areas like gaming (games usually come to iOS first even if they make it to Android later) and media editing and creation (finding a GarageBand equivalent in Android or Windows Phone just isn't possible). The same consistency that benefits most Apple consumers also benefits its developers since they have relatively few devices to develop for and test against.

Android

If iOS' strength is its consistency, Android's strength is its flexibility. The Android that you'll run into on smartphones has a few basic ingredients. The phones rely on Google Play and other Google services for much of their functionality, and they usually include some modified take on the iOS-like icons-on-a-home-screen layout (with widgets added for additional flavor). Otherwise, different OEM skins for Android can make each phone that runs the operating system look and feel quite different.

This malleability is generally a good thing for people who like to be in full control of their phones. You can switch keyboards and launchers if the one that comes with the phone doesn't suit your needs. With some effort, you can even install alternate Android ROMs to your phone, totally replacing the software that came with it.

The power Android gives to its most enthusiastic and technically oriented users can also make the experience of using an Android phone frustratingly inconsistent. OEMs tend to use a heavy hand with their Android skins, piling on bundled apps and dubiously beneficial features. Samsung is the biggest player in the Android space at the moment, and it in particular is guilty of this spaghetti-on-the-wall approach to hardware and software. The carriers get in on the fun too, adding their own branding and pre-loaded apps to Android phones sold on their networks.

These additional OEM and carrier additions and customizations complicate the Android update process. Most current phones and tablets without the word "Nexus" on them somewhere are a version or three behind the newest edition of Android. Google has been combatting that problem to some extent by breaking its core apps and services out from the rest of Android and updating them through Google Play instead, a strategy it has been pursuing in earnest for a little over a year now. This is mostly a good thing for users and third-party developers, but Android updates still bring important driver, security, and low-level feature updates that continue to move the platform forward.

Android's flexibility is likewise a double-edged sword for its application developers—their apps can interact with each other much more freely than they can in iOS, making it possible to do more things (and to do other things more efficiently). They can include widgets and little windows that pop up over top of whatever full-screen app you happen to be running. They can run items in the background even as you do other things. It's a more fully realized multitasking model than in iOS, for sure.

That said, fully supporting Android requires dealing with thousands of devices, each with differing screen sizes, differing amounts of RAM, differing chips, and differing software versions. Depending on what hardware you're using, you can run into strange problems if an app hasn't been tested on your specific device yet (some apps continue to look strange on 1080p Android phones even after a year of availability).

Finally, there's Google's ace in the hole: your data. Your personal information is the price you pay for using Google's mostly free services, and in exchange you get a phone that knows a truly astounding (occasionally alarming) amount of information about you. Using Google Now, you can track flight information and quickly grab boarding passes, check traffic and sports information, and even track packages—all without ever having to tell the phone explicitly to do those things. By accessing both your own data and the reams of searchable data that Google has about every topic under the sun, Android phones come really close to being the seamless personal assistants that smartphones have always aspired to be. The cost of those features is simply higher than most people care to think about.

Windows Phone 8

Of the three major platforms, Windows Phone 8 is perhaps the one that has changed the least since last year. That isn't to say it hasn't been updated—it has received three "General Distribution Release" updates since last December. But those updates have added mostly minor features and support for new hardware. There's nothing in them that would merit an increase in version number or change what it's like to use the operating system.

Even a year after its release, there's still nothing quite like Windows Phone 8. It eschews the icons-in-a-grid design of Android and iOS in favor of Microsoft's now-signature "Live Tiles," a customizable grid of squares and rectangles that serve to launch apps but can also double as widgets. On the one hand, this can make the phone more glance-able—put all the apps you care about the most at the top of your screen and you've got quick access to your most important stuff without having to dive into applications. On the other hand, the lack of a unified Notification Center (or equivalent feature) means that you'll often be scrolling through your home screen or your list of applications to stay on top of everything.

Just as iOS and Android phones have strong ties to Apple's and Google's software and services, Windows Phone integrates well with Microsoft's offerings. It still includes strong Office support and good integration with services like SkyDrive and SharePoint, and it's the best of the big three operating systems at integrating with Exchange servers (and, by extension, Outlook.com and Office 365 mail accounts). Thankfully, Microsoft doesn't make third-party e-mail services into second-class citizens on Windows Phone, and you'll be able to access your Gmail or Yahoo accounts with the same mail and calendar clients that Microsoft's own services use.

While Windows Phone 8's software hasn't changed drastically since its introduction, the hardware has improved since Nokia released its brick-like Lumia 920. Partners like HTC and Samsung have wavered in their support of Windows Phone of late, but Nokia's own offerings have gotten more varied. The slimmer profile of the Lumia 925 or 928 (depending on your carrier) is a superior take on the 920's design. The 41 megapixel Lumia 1020 puts the "camera" in camera phone. And just-announced large-screened offerings now look to bring Windows Phone's features to the "phablet" set (since the Lumia 1520 isn't out yet, we won't be able to include it in our write-up, but we'll be reviewing it separately as soon as it's available).

One thing we worried about last year was that the move from Windows Phone 8 to the inevitable Windows Phone 9 would break compatibility with older handsets, as the move from Windows Phone 7 to Windows Phone 8 did. Since then, Microsoft has gone on the record to say that Windows Phone 8 handsets will "have an upgrade path going forward," so you ought to be able to buy a phone now and also get the new software when it comes.

Finally, let's talk about apps. The Windows Store's selection is improving slowly but steadily. Right now, however, it's in that awkward stage where most people will be able to find at least one big thing they can't do without (for me, it's Dropbox and Google Drive). Windows Phone's game library is limited to bare necessities like Angry Birds or Jetpack Joyride, and it can't even match Android's level of support among indie developers. Knockoff versions of apps are abundant and can rise quite high in the "top free" lists, even when an official alternative is available. The situation isn't as dire as it once was, but while you can usually assume that iOS and Android will have most big-name apps in their stores somewhere, you can't say the same about Windows Phone.

One thing we worried about last year was that the move from Windows Phone 8 to the inevitable Windows Phone 9 would break compatibility with older handsets, as the move from Windows Phone 7 to Windows Phone 8 did. Since then, Microsoft has gone on the record to say that Windows Phone 8 handsets will "have an upgrade path going forward," so you ought to be able to buy a phone now and also get the new software when it comes.

Can we? The implication of what you wrote is Windows Phone 9 will be offered; but it would also fit with a rehash of what they did with WP7.8; which had some mostly cosmetic updates to match WP8 but lacked compatibility with apps written for the new version.

Throwing the LG G2 in the mix would have been nice as an alternate Android flagship phone. The OIS and improved sensor puts the camera well above any other Android phone I've seen. (I've ever used the Z1.) It also has a respectable battery.

The real downer is LG in particular and Verizon in general have a subpar track record for OS updates.

Man I was so hoping for a Firefox OS review here. I've got a Geeksphone Peak+ on order and I'm hoping to god it can get me off the iOS train.

How long before Firefox OS is included in this guide? Don't forget the little guys!

Probably when they go from toys for geeks and early adopters to something with a meaningful market share. Mozilla committing to a phone officially released to consumers in the developed market would probably help as well.

I bought a Moto X because of the Active Notifications feature. Being able to manage notifications without unlocking the phone is an excellent idea. It also helps that the industrial design is sensible, with slim bezels making for a one-handed friendly form factor.

I'm an Android fan, but you're dead-on about the over-exuberant skinning most manufacturers apply to it. Samsung and LG even futz with the system font, ruining text in important apps like the Play Store.

No mention of one of the main disadvantages of Android? I'm talking about security. While iOS is far from immune to attack, the fact that you can't arbitrarily install/run whatever you want gives it a huge leg up on Android when it comes to security.

Obviously, reasonable people can and do disagree as to whether the more controlled iOS platform is better than Android, but there's no arguing that it is more secure. Flexibility comes at a price.

Another area where iOS continues to excel is in its third-party app library—usually, if you need something, you can find a well-designed app that will do it somewhere in the app store. While "big name" apps like Hulu, Dropbox, Netflix, Spotify, and others are all available on most of the major platforms at this point, iOS continues to lead in individual areas...

I count seven iOS-only apps on my first screen and dock alone (no, I'm not counting Safari). And I just deleted Tweetbot and Reeder, which would have made it nine.

I come from Android, and had the same functionality in other apps there, but there are a some small iOS only shops that really put a lot of polish on their apps.

No mention of one of the main disadvantages of Android? I'm talking about security. While iOS is far from immune to attack, the fact that you can't arbitrarily install/run whatever you want gives it a huge leg up on Android when it comes to security.

Nonsense. The option to allow installation from "unknown sources" is disabled by default. Leave it that way and use reputable app stores.

Whatever "notification center" Microsoft puts in to appease commenters like these, please don't do it like the annoyance-fest of the Android and iOS implementation.

Glancing at your Start screen and seeing info on the live tiles really is a valid way of staying notied about things. Can it be improved? Of course. But saying you have to look at your tiles like it's a bad thing sounds silly when that's the point of them, like saying you have to look at a notification drawer like it's a bad thing. And the complaint I never understood... "What about the app that you want notifications from but you don't want to pin?" Well if you don't want to pin it, why do you want notifications from it?

Man I was so hoping for a Firefox OS review here. I've got a Geeksphone Peak+ on order and I'm hoping to god it can get me off the iOS train.

How long before Firefox OS is included in this guide? Don't forget the little guys!

Probably when they go from toys for geeks and early adopters to something with a meaningful market share. Mozilla committing to a phone officially released to consumers in the developed market would probably help as well.

So Ars is main stream consumerism products only? I don't think it would be a wasted page to peruse the Ars eye over the smaller smart phone OS's and include them in a systems guide such as this. After all this is a tech forum, and a vast number of readers are infact 'Geeks' so it would be prudent to cover their interest also.

They didn't cover Blackberry, either. I would expect a review of the FF phone when it releases, but to expect it to be included in what is essentially the "Ars Recommendation" is way too early in the FF Phone lifecycle.

I like your choice of the Moto X as the best overall Android phone. It's the best balance of device size, screen res, SoC, with some unique functions added.

So, what was the internal discussion on why not deciding on a best overall phone? Not worth it? Not really possible?

I would like to quibble with this:

Quote:

For several years, Apple has led the pack when it comes to mobile GPU performance, and the Imagination Technologies graphics cores that the new Apple A7 uses can best even the mighty (and ubiquitous) Snapdragon 600 and 800 in 3D rendering speeds.

Maybe as writer you fall in love with the turn of a phrase or an idea that is "obviously true". But if Apple has sustained a GPU advantage through the years, and continues to be either at parity or have a GPU advantage, what is so mighty about the Adreno 320/330? Shouldn't Apple's GPUs be considered "mighty" while the Adreno 320/330 be the challenger?

Secondly, it's doubtful to me that the S600 and S800 are ubiquitous. Apple only has 10 to 15% of the "smartphone" market, yes. But the non-USA version of the Samsung Galaxy S3 shipped with a Mali-400 GPU and the non-USA version of the Galaxy S4 ships with a PowerVR SGX544MP3. The GSM Galaxy Note II/III ships with Mali-6xx graphics. The LTE version with an Adreno (I think).

Considering the installed base of iPhone and non-USA Galaxy S/Note devices, Adreno 320/330 GPUs are probably running 3rd behind PowerVR and Mali GPU unit share. If you are only thinking about the USA market, then I think it's likely PowerVR is number 1 as well, than probably Adreno GPUs.

An entertaining article, but I think consumers purchase cell phones based on multiple criteria, and not just because their usage fits into a neat silo called "Productivity" or "Gaming" or "Music/Video/Entertainment". The one exception I see to this would be the Photography silo; The Lumia 1020 is a beast.

As an example, if you follow the Ars writers meta-twitter feed, you'll see that a lot of the Ars staff use iPhones as their daily smartphone and that they're obviously productive with it (I think they'd get something else if they were not). Obviously, there's a professional/personal balance they like, along with other determining factors.

Music playback should really have the Nexus 5 higher due to its massive battery improvements. At the least, it deserves a mention that it doubled due to changes within 4.4.

Also can't really agree with video going to the iPhone because it's too small and the resolution is too small. For that, the real winner goes to something not listed here: Sony Xperia Z Ultra. Which also deserves a mention to be honest - it checks off all the hardware marks Snapdragon 800, LTE), has a MicroSD, and dwarfs the other phones with its gorgeous 1080p 6.4" screen. If you're of the motto bigger is better and can afford the non Nexus 5 phones, there is zero competition.

I have an iPhone 5s and several Android devices. Between Android and iOS, I have a love/hate relationship with both platforms - they manage to piss me off in different ways.

'But at least in Android, you can change it to how you want it.' For the most part, yes. But that's also part of its problem. I spend more time fucking with my Android devices than I do actually using them. It's a HUGE time suck. With iOS, you figure out pretty quickly what isn't possible, and just learn to live with it And that's not always a bad thing. There is a certain freedom that comes with that lack of freedom... like the freedom to go outside every once in awhile

Sure, it's POSSIBLE to use Android and not tinker with it endlessly, just like it's possible to sleep with a hot chick and not bang her. But seriously, who wants to do that

I'm still on my phone daily. I use a Lumia 920 and, as a cousin to the 925 and 928, I'd say it definitely is a great all-around phone. I also used it for a while at my old job where we had Yahoo email and I made extensive use of the Office suite on it. For getting work done, it did a fantastic job.

That said, as I haven't picked up a new phone for a year (except the new iPhone), I'm surprised my 920 is said to be a "brick". It certainly isn't the most svelte, but it feels good to hold most of the time. Maybe I just like bricks.

Man I was so hoping for a Firefox OS review here. I've got a Geeksphone Peak+ on order and I'm hoping to god it can get me off the iOS train.

How long before Firefox OS is included in this guide? Don't forget the little guys!

Probably when they go from toys for geeks and early adopters to something with a meaningful market share. Mozilla committing to a phone officially released to consumers in the developed market would probably help as well.

Here's a nice addendum to the state of mobile phones by a master plot designer, Horace Dediu:

It's an iPhone related chart, but Dediu includes major OEMs as well. Mobile phones are in the latter half of it's growth stage, where everything is basically good and should meet the needs of most everyone. Maybe another year or two of interesting devices. We're pretty close to being in the 2009 to 2013 era of PCs, maybe we are already in it. Kind of boring. New performance increases, albeit kind of small, haven't been that beneficial. New form factors haven't really stuck, and we all remain satisfied with a clamshell laptop or a desktop. Looks like in the mobile world, it's the slate form factor.

Mobile phones are in the latter half of it's growth stage, where everything is basically good and should meet the needs of most everyone. Maybe another year or two of interesting devices. We're pretty close to being in the 2009 to 2013 era of PCs, maybe we are already in it. Kind of boring.

This is one thing that kind of bugs me about tech review blogs. They kick the losers when they're down, but really the difference for an unsophisticated user between the very best smartphones and the merely mediocre losers is small today for things like hardware capability and basic OS. It's only really the app availability that is all that different now, yet reviewers claim some phones are "garbage" or worse just because they might have more slippery plastic, or the occasional stutter when scrolling when this is stuff that regular users don't care about (or else Samsung wouldn't be number one)

Edit: forgot to mention that I like the mostly balanced nature of this review and Ars in general compared to some of the competition.

Is a device with a 6-inch display even a smartphone anymore? The Lumia 1520 is so comically large that doing ordinary smartphone things with it feels like you're making a joke. At its best, the 1520 is a funny party trick. At its worst, it's absurd.

It would have been nice to see a review of Blackberry 10 instead of just propagating the 'company going out of business' rumor.

What rumor? Nobody claims to have inside information that they're selling the furniture right now, or anything like that. They're just looking at the company's actions, public plans, and performance over time, and making the informed prediction that yes, they're doomed.

and why should i believe microsoft this time when they said exactly the same about 7/7.5/7.8? they lied to us then,they probably will again.ms should have stuck to upgrading 6.5, we did'nt all want/need phones that could do everything android/ios could,if they had just upgraded 6.5 they would still be in charge of the enterprise part of the market,where they make big fat profits.

I like your choice of the Moto X as the best overall Android phone. It's the best balance of device size, screen res, SoC, with some unique functions added.

So, what was the internal discussion on why not deciding on a best overall phone? Not worth it? Not really possible?

The problem is how do you define "best"? The article itself is a hint of the issue, there's a best phone for productivity, another best phone for camera, etc. And for each person each of these aspects have different level of importance to them, therefore the best phone for a person would not be the best for another if they don't use their phones in exactly the same manner.

To name a "best overall phone" would make the article itself pointless, subjective, and starts a thermonuclear fanboi war in the forum.

What rumor? Nobody claims to have inside information that they're selling the furniture right now, or anything like that. They're just looking at the company's actions, public plans, and performance over time, and making the informed prediction that yes, they're doomed.

To be fair, Ars probably won't include a review of the Ouya when they do a compaison review of the Xbone and PS4. Although it would be reall cool to ready a 'state of video games in 2013' article.

OEMs tend to use a heavy hand with their Android skins, piling on bundled apps and dubiously beneficial features. Samsung is the biggest player in the Android space at the moment, and it in particular is guilty of this spaghetti-on-the-wall approach to hardware and software. The carriers get in on the fun too, adding their own branding and pre-loaded apps to Android phones sold on their networks.

I really think it's worth pointing out that none of this extra crap can be uninstalled by the user, without "rooting" and voiding the warranty on the device. Which is totally unacceptable, for an OS which bills itself as being "most open".